I have received great help here with my 5.1 surround mix and also encoding. I use PP and Encorse CS4 and I am trying to clarify a setting in the SurCode Media Encoder which I am using to get from PP to Encore for a Blu-Ray disc.

Minnetonka seems to state that it is okay to Multiplex the audio and video in media encoder and import them into encore as one. I understand you cannot listen to the 5.1 track in any event in Encore but I have no issue with that.

However in some posts I have seen, I had read that you needed to render the audio and video separately if you are doing 5.1 and to NOT multiplex them in Media Encoder. Perhaps this depends on what version of PP you are running? Any clarifcation most appreciated. If it could be multiplexed, I guess that is one less chance to have an issue with audio Sync.

Also, I have the Manual for Surcode but is there somewhere where recommended settings for 5.1 endoding by Surcode are posted? For example Data rate, etc.?

Thanks, you are correct. Could not find much about exporting. Thanks for

confirming the recommendation to leave matrixing off.

I am still researching the best settings for all the surcode parameters. It would nice to have a "default 5.1 configuration" somewhere. Pouring through Minnetonka Surcode manual for the other settings. See that 448 kb/s is recommended for multichannel material. That helped.

Actually, when one first opens up the SurCode settings in MPEG, the default settings are pretty good. I only had to do a few tweaks. Now, if one makes a bunch of changes, I am not sure how one would get back to those, exactly, unless they took notes.

Now remember, PrPro will let you monitor your DD 5.1 SS, but Encore will not. It handles the DD 5.1 SS AC3, but ONLY in pass-thru mode. I don't want you to become alarmed, when the 5.1 disappears in Encore and you think something is amiss. The DD 5.1 SS will write to your DVD/BD just fine, but you cannot monitor it in anything but stereo, while in Encore.